Sealing wounds and method of



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utentecl Apr. 28; 1936 UNITED STATES accents PREPARATION FOR PROTECTING AND SEALING WOUNDS AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME Karl Jungmann, Aussig-on-the-Elbe, Czechoslovakia No Drawing.

Application December 17, 1934,

Serial No. 757,963. In Germany March 25, 1931 '6 Claims. ((1167-58) This inventionrelates to pulverulent prepare-- tions for protecting and sealing wounds, and more particularly for use as a mechanically acting hemastatlc, and relates further to a method of manufacturing each preparations. It is an object of thednyention to provide a preparation which is capable, when brought in contact with the fluid discharge from the wound, to. absorb the same and to form a plaster-like coating which mechanically seals the wound. A further object is to provide a preparation, which through the dormation of a tough elastic skin in the moment of application to bleeding woundsis capable of withstanding the pressure of the blood (within certain limits), so that further hemorrhage is checked. Further objects. of the invention will become apparent in the course of the ensuing description.

The invention is based upon the discovery that it is necessary, for the purpose of mechanical blood stanching by the formation of a seal, to employ pulverulent swelling substances, such as insoluble kinds of gum exemplified by various varieties of tragacanth, and groundseed kernels oifthe carob bean, having the property, at nor- -mal temperatures up to body-temperature, of

forming immediately, that is to say within'a few,-

generally less than 5. seconds after con-tactiwlth the fluid discharge, coherent andelastlc jellies Whichwill withstandthe pressure of this fluid.

The expression tragacanth is intended to cover all or the various gums known by that name and including the various species and varieties of Astrcgalus, and the various varieties and specicstoif'Sterculiw and Cochlospermum cossypium. Gunt'trom Sterculia is sometimes lifhcwn as Karayct gum, but according to the llritish Pharmaceutical Codex 1923 it is also called Indian tragacanth.

lnsome cases, it is desirable that the pulverulent swelling substances used have the property ot permanently taking up the discharge from the wound, while swelling and forming jellies. For the attainment of this object there are two factors of decisive importance, namely first the swelling velocity of the initial pulverulent substances, which in its turn has to do inter alia with their capacity for becoming wetted and secondly the firmness or the gels formed. I have now found that the swelling velocity of powders capable of swelling, and more still the firmness ol' the jelllesformed from these powders on contact with water or aqueous liquids such as blood, is dependent to a very considerable extent on t grain size of the powder employed. In order to obtain the optimum effect it is necessary that the pulverulent substances used do not contain portions of a grain size exceeding a' certain upper limit. I have found that the pulverulent substances used, if they'are to exhibit the required 5 properties, must be free from particles which are retained by a screen No. 35 (width of opening 0.500 mm). Such powders are still'better suited that in addition are free from particles which are retained by, a screen No. 70 (width of 1 opening 0.210 mm.). I have further found that it is of advantage to use pulverulent substances which are also free from constituents of the fineness of dust, preferably from portions of a grain size to pass through a screen N0. 200 (width oiopening 0.074 mm), and better still from portions of a grain size to pass through a screen No. 140 (width of opening 0.105 mm.).

Any partial fraction lying anywhere between the above given limits may be separated out and used for the purpose in view.

For the purpose of producing powder of this nature, the starting materials are comminuted, for example in a mill of close set, mortar, or the like, after which at least the coarse'particles, but preferably also the particles of theflneness of dust, are removed. For the separating out of the particles to be eliminated there can be employed all the usualmethods, such as screening, wind sifting, and the like. It is simplest to dress the powdered material according to grain sizes, by screening. The coarse particles are eliminated;

by sieving out on a screen No. or any other.

screen between No. 35 and No. 70. Thefinest' particles are then preferably eliminatedbywiev 35 ing out on a screen No..200. It is,however, of advantage, as mentioned above to 'separate out still coarser particles than: those corresponding to screen No. 200. For this purpose for example a screen No. 140 or any screen between Nos. 140 and 200 is taken. The sieve designation here used is that of the U. S. Standard (International Critical Tables of Numerical Data, Physics, Chemistry and Technology, prepared under the auspices of the International Research Council and the National Academy of Sciences by the National Research Council of the U. S. of Am. vol. II, page 329). l

The capacity of the powder-of being wetted and thus its velocity of swelling, and, moreover,

the firmness of the gels formed on contact with aqueous liquids may also be considerably increased by subjecting the powder to a heat treatment under such conditions, as regards temperature and duration or the heat actiomthat a noticeable change of the color, generally a change to yellow or brown, takes place. This change of the color'usually sets in after a period of one hour when heating the powder up to or C., and already after a shorter period when heating to higher temperatures. This heat treatment may be effected before dressing the powder to remove the constituents retained by sieve No. 35. But it is also possible to subject the powder already dressed to this heat treatment.

If pulverulent substances according to the present invention be employed these substances, when brought in contact in suitable quantities with the liquid discharge, at body-temperature, will swell within a very short time, generallywithin less than fiv seconds, and form an elastic and firm jelly constituting an immediate and firmly adhering protective cover and seal of the wound.

The swelLng pulverulent substances can be sterilized in a known manner, for example by treatment with antiseptically active substances, preferably with readily evaporating substances of the nature of chloroform, toluol, and the like, or with other known disinfectants such as trypaflavin, bismuth salts, iodoform and the like.

If the sterilizing is effected by the application of heat, the heat treatment described above for the purpose of increasing the capacity of the powder of being wetted may be combined in a simple manner with the sterilization, by carefully heating the swelling substances for several hours, for example in a thin layer or with agitation, to a temperature in the neighbourhood of 100 C., whereupon the temperature is increased until the water is practically driven off, which is often the case at 120 C. The powder thus treated is now further heated in a closed vessel, for example at temperatures of 120 to C., until the desired capacity of being wetted and the change in color which depend on each other, are attained. The powder becomes at the same time sterile.

There can also be added to the inert swelling powders substances of specific eificacy, such as styptics, disinfectants, or analgetics, either singly or in combination.

The preparations obtained in accordance with the invention can be sold either in the form of a loose powder to be strewn or dusted on to wounds, or can be incorporated in carrier materials such as surgical dressing fabric, cottonwool, lint, paper, plasters, and the like. If a carrier material such as cotton-wool is used the fibrous material is embedded in the gel formed from the powder in contact with the fluid discharge.

In contradistinction to the usual surgical dressing fabrics or the chemical acting agents for treating wounds or blood stanching, which either do not prevent with certainty the penetration of microbes into the wound or hinder the discharge of secretions from the wound, the swelling powders described are capable of absolutely sealing the wounds and at the same time binding the secretion by absorbing it. While swelling, they also permit stanching rapidly and reliably haamorrhages which hitherto have been regarded as incapable of being stanched such as for example hzemorrhages following incisions of the liver.

Examples (1) 1000 grams of ground seeds of the carob bean are first freed from the grained particles which are too coarse, with the aid of screen No. 70, and then from the particles of the fineness of dust by sieving on a screen No. 140. In this latter screen there remain about 550 grams. This sieved fraction is spread out in a thin layer on glass dishes, and heated for 2 hours at about 110? C. in the drying chamber. The product assumes a faintly yellow color in the course of heating. After this drying process the powder is placed in a bottle which is closed with a plug of cotton-wool and heated in the drying chamber for 3 hours at 130 C. The color of the powder will now change to a brownish color and becomes sterile.-

(2) The sieved fraction of 550 grams weight obtained in accordance with Example (1) is uniformly sprinkled with 50 ccs. of a 10% alcoholic solution of trichlore-isobutyl alcohol (chloretone), and the alcohol allowed to evaporate.

(3) The sieved fraction of 550 grams weight obtained in accordance with Example (1) is sprinkled, if desired after heating, with 50 cos. of a 10% solution of iodine in chloroform which is then allowed to evaporate. The disappearance of the chloroform is visible by the iodine changing color from reddish-violet to brown. Tincture of iodine can also be employed, to obtain a strongly antiseptic product.

(4) 1000 grams weight of gum tragacanth are comminuted and heated in the heating chambar for 2 hours to C. The product changes its color after a short time to a faintly yellow color and becomes gradually brownish. The heat treated powder is now sieved on a screen No. 50, and the constituents passing this screen are freed from the dust-like particles by screening on a screen No. 1'70.

' What I claim is:

1. A hemostatic preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids for mechanically sealing and protecting bleeding wounds comprising a powder of a gum selected from the class consisting of tragacanth and carob bean seed kernels, the said powder consisting of particles mainly of such grain sizes as pass through screen No. 35 and are retained by screen No. 200, and forming with the wound secretions a firm coherent coating mass which adheres strongly to the flesh of the wound.

2. A hemostatic preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids for mechanically sealing and protecting bleeding wounds comprising a powder of a gum selected from the class consisting of tragacanth and carob bean seed kernels, the said powder consisting of particles mainly of such grain sizes as pass through screen No. 70 and are retained by screen No. 140, and forming with the wound secretions a firm coherent coating mass which adheres strongly to the flesh of the wound.

3. A hemostatic preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids for mechanically sealing and protecting bleeding wounds comprising a substantially dehydrated powder of a gum selected from the class consisting of tragacanth and carob bean seed kernels, the said powder consisting of particles mainly of such grain sizes as pass through screen No. 70 and are retained by screen No. 140, and forming with the wound secretions a firm coherent coating mass which adheres strongly to the flesh of the wound.

4. A hemostatic preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids for mechanically sealing and protecting bleeding wounds comprising a substantially dehydrated acsaoee wder oi a seiected from the class consisting of tragacanth and catch bean seed kernels, the said powder consisting of particles mainly of such grain sizes as pass through screen No. 35 and are retained by screen No. 200, and forming with the wound secretions a firm coherent coating mass which adheres strongly to the flesh of the wound.

5. A process of producing a preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids, for protecting and sealing wounds which consists in comminuting a gum selected from the class consisting oi tragacanth and carob seed kernels to a powder and dressing the said powder to remove "coarse grains.

6. A process 01 producing a preparation capable of swelling when in contact with aqueous liquids, for protecting and sealing wounds which consists in comminuting a gum selected from the class consisting of tragacanth and carob bean seed kernels to a powder, dressing the said powder to remove coarse grains and thereafter subjecting the said powder to a heat treatment for such a period and suiificient to substantially dehydrate the same.

KARL JUNGMANN. 

